Two piece reversible garment



y 21, 1954 M. A. HEATER ETAL 3, 41, 75

TWO PIECE REVERSIBLE GARMENT Filed July 13, 1961 MARTHA ANN HEATER 42 JEAN M. VON STERNBERG 45 INVENTORS. 43- 4| 5 BY FIG.5. FIG.6.

AGENT.

United States Patent O Calif.

Filed July 13, 1961, Ser. No. 123,685 3 Claims. (Cl. 2--74) This application relates to garments, and particularly dresses of the type known as reversible.

In the dress art, itis desirable to be able to provide a dress which is reversible, so that a choice of fabric, patterns, colors, and the like may be made with a single garment, and so that accidentally soiled or damaged portions can be turned inward so as not to show. Over and above these desiderata in ordinary reversible dresses, there are a number of others which are not commonly provided. For example, it is highly desirable that a dress, or the component parts thereof, be capable of being ironed in a mangle. Again, it is desirable to provide a dress in such a way that a choice may be made of any two from three, say, component parts, thereby offering a number of permutations for the same basic garment.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a reversible garment, and more particularly a reversible dress, comprised of two halves which have such a shape that they may be ironed in a mangle, lend themselves to simplicity of manufacture, provide reversibility, interchangeability with each other, and with other similar halves, and may be worn backwards or frontwards, the invention contemplating that all, or in some embodiments only some, of these objects be fulfilled.

Other objects will become apparent as the description thereof proceeds.

In the drawings,

FIGURE 1 shows the two halves of our dress, laid out, as on a table.

FIGURE 2 shows the two halves partially assembled.

FIGURE 3 is a front view of our assembled dress.

FIGURE 4 shows the back view of the same dress.

FIGURES 5 and 6 show alternative tie or fastening means.

Generally speaking, and in accordance with an illustrative embodiment of our invention, we provide two halves, designated as 10 and 11 in the drawings. As may be seen particularly from FIGURE 1, each half comprises two panels, half 10 comprising panels 12 and 13, while half 11 comprises panels 14 and 15. The two panels are joined together, the juncture line for half 10 being designated 16 in FIGURE 1, and the juncture line for half 11 being designated 17. As may be seen especially from FIGURE 1, we prefer to form the panels and join them in the manner shown, so that each half may be substantially formed into a plane, i.e., laid flat on a table, except for a slight excess of material forming the shoulder covering portion of each half, as is clear from the drawings.

In FIGURE 1 (and it may be remarked for ease in visualizing the invention, the two halves 10 and 11 have been shown as slightly overlapping), it will be apparent that we provide arm openings 18 and 19, which are most simply provided by simply failing to sew together the two panels at that portion of the garment structure. We also provide tie receiving means 20 and 21 along juncture lines 16 and 17, respectively. These may aptly be termed tie means adapting means. In our preferred form of construction, these tie receiving means 20 and 21 are simply openings between the two panels, a suitable distance below the arm openings 18 and 19, preferably at about waistlevel. Located about the same distance down from the top of each garment half are tie means 22 and 23, on panels 12 and 15, respectively, and 24 and 25 on panels 13 and 14, respectively. For simplicity in describing the invention, and also because it is our best and preferred form, we have shown these tie means in FIGURES 1 through 4 as simply straps (strips) of fabric, but it will be obvious that any tie or fastening means common in the art, such as snaps, buttons, and the like, may be used in their place.

In assembling the two halves to form a complete garment or dress, we first fold half 11 about panel 13, as shown in FIGURE 2, passing tie means 23 through aperture 20, and at the same time passing tie me ans 24 through aperture 21. Then we fold panel 12 over and on top of panel 15, as shown in FIGURE 3, which brings together tie means 22 and 24, which are then tied into a bow or knot or the like, and also brings together tie means 23 and 25, which are then tied together in a similar fashion.

As will be apparent from FIGURE 3, our assembled dress now presents a neck opening and two arm openings, and may be placed on the wearer.

Observation of FIGURE 4, which is the back side of FIGURE 3, will show that it is in all respects identical to FIGURE 3, except for the optional pocket 47 on panel 12, which has been included in our drawings as an aid in visualizing the assembly. Thus, because of this essential similarity the dress may be worn frontwards or backwards. As a further aid in visualizing our inventive garment, it is pointed out that the joined panels which make a half of the garment, e.g., panels 12 and 13, have an identical shape except that they are mirror images of each other. Half 10 is made by sewing together the two panels 12 and 13 at the mirror plane.

Also, it will become apparent upon inspection and consideration of our disclosure that, before the dress is assembled in the fashion shown, half 10 may be picked up, reversed from left to right, i.e., turned over, and the assembly of the dress carried out just as shown in the drawings and previously described, except that the outside of two of the panels in our previous description now become the inside. If the dress or garment is made with a different fabric pattern or different color on one side from that on the other, it is clear that a change in appearance will result from the manner of assembly.

As mentioned, we prefer tie means consisting of a simple strap or strip of fabric, but we may use other fastening devices common in the art. For example, in FIGURE 5, which is a fragmentary view corresponding to a portion of the left side of FIGURE 1, tie strip 22 on panel 12 has been replaced by a short cloth tab 41 on panel 44 bearing a snap fastener 42. The remainder of the tie strips would be replaced in a similar fashion. In FIGURE 6, a small magnet 43 has been sewn just inside the edge of the panel 45, corresponding to panel 12 of FIGURE 1. This may be a short Alnico bar or button magnet, or one of the newer ceramic magnets. It will, of course, engage the similar magnets on the other three panels in a fastening relationship, by any pair of magnets merely being pushed together.

Our invention is particularly useful as a childs dress, but we do not limit ourselves to childrens garments, and, indeed, a mother-daughter combination of two dresses essentially similar except for size is very successful with our invention. Moreover, while throughout much of our description and the claims which follow we have used the term dress, we intend this to include garments made in accordance with our invention even when the garment is a smock, for example, which may be used by men and women alike. Indeed, because of the ability with our invention to turn a soiled front around so that it becomes the inside, our invention is especially adapted to smocks and the type of garment known as a gown, such as is used by men and women in pharmacies, workshops of all sorts, hospitals, and the like.

As will be evident to those skilled in the art, each half is most conveniently made by cutting two pieces of goods to the shape indicated, for example, in FIGURE 1, and joining them around the edges in the fashion common to this art, so that the seams are eventually turned inside and become concealed. It will be further evident that any desired decoration, such as cutouts, monograms, and like appliques, decorative edgings, etc., and the like, may be applied, and pockets, where needed or desired.

Furthermore, instead of providing a total of only two halves, three or indeed more halves, all dissimilar in fabric pattern or colors but alike in size and shape may be provided, from which any pair may be assembled to form a dress in accordance with the invention. It will be clear that the total variety obtainable from only three halves in this manner is very great indeed.

An alternative feature, which, however, we prefer to include and have shown in the embodiment presented especially in FIGURE 1 of the drawings, in the provision of a loop, and more particularly what may be termed a belt loop, traversing the major axes, end to end, of tie receiving aperture means 20 and 21. These loops, which we preferably make out of the same material as one face of the garment, are shown as 26 and 27, respectively, in FIGURE 1. The provision of these loops permits tying the corresponding ties 23 or 22, directly to the tie receiving means, when so desired.

While we have described our invention with the aid of specific examples, it will be apparent that considerable variation in detail, design, construction and the like is possible within the broad scope of our invention, as defined by the claims which follow.

Having described the invention, we claim:

1. A dress, comprising, in combination: a first half and a second half, said halves being essentially similar in shape, each said half being composed of a front panel and a back panel identical in shape to said front panel but a mirror image thereof, said panels being joined together at a juncture line, each said half having an arm opening adjacent the top and a tie means passing aperture below said arm opening, each of said panels bearing a tie means on its outer edge adapted to passing through said tie means passing aperture, said dress in its assembled form presenting a front composed of a panel of one of said halves overlapping a panel of the other of said halves, and a back composed of the remaining tWo panels likewise in overlapping relationship and said first and second halves being joined only by said tie means.

2. A dress, comprising, in combination: a first half and a second half, said halves being essentially similar in shape, each said half being composed of a front panel and a back panel identical in shape to said front panel but a mirror image thereof, said panels being joined together at and being essentially symmetrical about a juncture line, each said half having an arm opening adjacent the top and a tie means passing aperture below said arm opening, each of said panels bearing a tie means on its outer edge adapted to passing through said tie means passing aperture, said dress in its assembled form presenting a front composed of a panel of one of said halves overlapping a panel of the other of said halves, and a back composed of the remaining two panels likewise in overlapping relationship, and each of said panels being wearable outwardly on either side thereof and said first and second halves being joined only by said tie means.

3. A dress, comprising, in combination: a first half and a second half, said halves being essentially similar in shape, each said half being composed of a front panel and a back panel identical in shape to said front panel but a mirror image thereof, said panels being joined together at and being essentially symmetrical about a juncture line, each said half having an arm opening adjacent the top and a tie means passing aperture below said arm opening, each of said panels bearing a tie means on its outer edge adapted to passing through said tie means passing aperture, said dress in its assembled form presenting a front composed of a panel of one of said halves overlapping a panel of the other of said halves, and a back composed of the remaining two panels likewise in overlapping relationship, and each of said panels being wearable outwardly on either side thereof, and each of said halves being made of a first material on one side and a second material on the other side, said first and said second materials being dissimilar and said first and second halves being joined only by said tie means.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 884,063 Baldwin Apr. 7, 1908 2,425,402 Sieloff Aug. 12, 1947 2,546,057 Bodin et al. Mar. 20, 1951 2,657,388 OBrien Nov. 3, 1953 2,690,564 Kingston et al Oct. 5, 1954 FOREIGN PATENTS 4,974 Great Britain Apr. 23, 1892 5,092 Great Britain Sept. 5, 1912 710,953 Great Britain June 23, 1954 

1. A DRESS, COMPRISING, IN COMBINATION: A FIRST HALF AND A SECOND HALF, SAID HALVES BEING ESSENTIALLY SIMILAR IN SHAPE, EACH SAID HALF BEING COMPOSED OF A FRONT PANEL AND A BACK PANEL IDENTICAL IN SHAPE TO SAID FRONT PANEL BUT A MIRROR IMAGE THEREOF, SAID PANELS BEING JOINED TOGETHER AT A JUNCTURE LINE, EACH SAID HALF HAVING AN ARM OPENING ADJACENT THE TOP AND A TIE MEANS PASSING APERTURE BELOW SAID ARM OPENING, EACH OF SAID PANELS BEARING A TIE MEANS ON ITS OUTER EDGE ADAPTED TO PASSING THROUGH SAID TIE MEANS PASSING APERTURE, SAID DRESS IN ITS ASSEMBLED FORM PRESENTING A FRONT COMPOSED OF A PANEL OF ONE OF SAID HALVES OVERLAPPING A PANEL OF THE OTHER OF SAID HALVES, AND A BACK COMPOSED OF THE REMAINING TWO PANELS LIKEWISE IN OVERLAPPING RELATIONSHIP AND SAID FIRST AND SECOND HALVES BEING JOINED ONLY BY SAID TIE MEANS. 